Jumping
by PhoenixFire Lia
Summary: Abused by his classmates, Ken decides that the best way to resolve this is suicide. DARK! Angst, violence, attempted suicide, yaoi, LANGUAGE.


Jumping

            The water below the bridge was partially frozen; ice a thin eggshell over the glacial water. He could see through the ice, the water underneath it inky and ominous. He swallowed hard, certain the decision he was making was for the best. Besides, it was too late. One cannot un-send suicide emails. He fingered a mark on his cheek, the bruise a sick purple on his otherwise pale skin. Ichijouji Ken would die the same way he lived, alone. He hesitated for a moment as he climbed up onto the rails, thinking of the people his death would affect. But in Ken's mind, the end was greater than the means, and he stood on the stone rail, ready to shed his corporeal bonds. 

"I'll never have to suffer the slings and arrows of degradation again. Goodbye, world. I leave you one less fool to mock," he murmured. 

~*~

            Stones. They had cornered him and thrown stones at him, each one leaving a reddened welt on his pale skin. Venomous words and derogatory insults had tumbled from their lips as they pelted him, physically and emotionally. There had been no one to save him. No one to protect him from their blows. He didn't go home. He limped to the park, typing out his requiem on the little device in his pocket, sending it without a second thought, and hobbled his way to the stone bridge spanning the unfathomably deep pond in the depths of Tamachi Park. And there he stood, ready to plunge himself over the edge, ready to die. 

~*~

            Motomiya Daisuke thought his feet would fall off as he ran, full out, lungs burning and muscles screaming from lack of oxygen. Tamachi was ten minutes away from Odaiba, the park farther still. He would've dropped from exhaustion under other circumstances, would've waited, sought out Taichi or Yamato, gotten a ride from them. But it would have taken too long, and time was precious. He felt sick, sick from weariness and sick from the potential of losing his best friend and the one person he cared about more than anything in the world. His step faltered, he fell to the pavement, grazing shins and cheek alike, blood oozing from the lacerations. Daisuke regained his footing, took a deep breath, and continued his run. He had to make it. Life, and love, hung in the balance. 

~*~

            Ken edged his toes to the end of the railing, peering over the edge again from his lofty height. He faltered again, half-hoping to hear his brother's spirit whispering to him, imploring him not to do what he was about to. But there was no Osamu, only Ken, only Ken's heart pounding loudly against his ribcage, only Ken's breath coming in slow sighs. He began to lean forward, arms wide, so that the balls of his feet were the only tethers he had left to existence. 

_May there be serenity in death, _he thought. 

~*~

            Daisuke cursed loudly, caught on a branch as he bolted through the park, making wild promises to any and every deity that would listen to him, vowing to do anything and give anything so that Ken might live. He tore the piece of cloth free from the branch and continued his breathless dash. Just beyond the offensive tree was the bridge, and Ken, who was about to freefall into the frigid water below. 

"Ken, no!" he screamed, voice hoarse and cracking from lack of oxygen. Whatever footing he had left, Ken lost it in that moment, pitching over the side of the bridge. Daisuke let out a holler of agony and sped down to the water, plunging in. It felt like hundreds of thousands of knives stabbing him, agonizing pain burning his very being. 

            He swam to what he guessed was the spot where Ken had fallen in, wildly looking around, shivering in the water. No sign of the cobalt-haired boy anywhere. Daisuke became hysterical, almost unable to keep his own head above water. He shrieked Ken's name over and over, wondering if he should dive down and try to find him. Half-frozen tears streaked down his wet face, leaving hoary trails of icy salt water. Suddenly Ken shot up through the water with a great splash, gulping air, his violet eyes wide. Daisuke grabbed hold of him, holding him until he could breathe again, until the coughing no longer wracked his fragile body. 

"Daisuke," he murmured, on the brink between consciousness and blackness, "I don't want to die."

~*~

             Ken's eyes opened slowly, his long lashes fluttering, trying to clear away the haze. He could hear the hum of machines and his own breath rasping in his chest. He tried to sit up, found he couldn't, nor could he move his right arm. Blobby figures came into view, and as his sight cleared they manifested into his parents. 

"Wha…what happened?" he murmured. "Where am I?"

"You tried to commit suicide, stupid," Miyako's voice snapped from somewhere. 

Somebody hissed a reprimand at her, probably one of the older Chosen. 

"You're in the hospital, Ken. You and Daisuke nearly froze to death after you tried jumping off the Tamachi Park Bridge," his father stated soothingly. 

"Hypothermia, pneumonia, and some minor contusions. They're keeping you overnight, just to be safe," Kido Jyou said authoritatively. 

The hospital. That would explain the mechanical sound, and the fact that his right arm was immobile, as he was strapped to an intravenous unit.

Memories flooded Ken's mind suddenly. The stones, the bridge, Daisuke…

"Daisuke! Where's Daisuke?" he moaned, thrashing slightly. 

Daisuke groaned loudly. "A Popsicle?! I nearly freeze to death and they give me a Popsicle?! What kind of a sick joke is this? Did Jun put the doctors up to that?" 

Ken smiled weakly, glad to know his vociferous friend was all right. There was an awkward feeling in the room, Daisuke trying to keep the mood light as he joked with Takeru about hospital food and the prospects of getting upgraded to something more substantial than chicken broth. However, it didn't take much to figure that the friendly bantering was preventing them from discussing the near-tragedy Ken had caused. 

            "All right, gang, I think Daisuke and Ken need to be alone, get their rest, eat their Jell-o," Taichi commanded, herding the group of Chosen out of the room. Ken and Daisuke's parents shuffled out as well, kissing their sons and sniffling over their condition and whatnot. Aside from the respected parents, Ishida Yamato was the last to leave. 

"Ken…"

"Yamato-sempai?" he asked hesitantly, bracing for a full-on lecture. Yamato seated himself at the foot of the bed. 

"Don't worry, I'm not here to lecture…much. I can understand some of your reasoning for doing what you did today, I went through the same kind of inner turmoil you did when I was about your age…don't tell the others, but I almost slit my wrists once."

Ken's violet eyes widened in disbelief. Yamato nodded, continuing in his hushed tone. 

"Come talk to me next time, Ken. Even if I have to drive to Tamachi at three in the morning or blow off a concert or cancel a date I will. All of that is insignificant compared to your life. Besides, I think a homily from me is a better alternative to jumping off a bridge…though Takeru may say otherwise."

Wearily he nodded, and Yamato took his leave, leaning on the doorframe for a moment, his sapphire eyes narrowed mischievously. 

"Don't hit the call button every other minute, Daisuke. Takeru tried it after they took his appendix out and they almost sent him home before his time."

Daisuke snapped his fingers in mock defeat as the door slid closed, leaving the two of them alone in the quiet, with only the machines around them and the patter of nurses' clogs defying the stillness.

~*~

            "Ken-chan?" 

The query came out of nowhere, from almost an hour's worth of silence. Ken had been half-asleep, slightly sated by painkillers. What Daisuke had been doing was anyone's guess, as a silent Daisuke is a rare species indeed. 

"Hmm?" he mumbled thickly, trying to adjust the bed to the proper angle via remote. 

Daisuke hopped out of his bed, wheeling the intravenous unit along with him as he sat down beside his cobalt-haired friend. Ken sensed Daisuke had an inkling of an idea as to why he attempted suicide. The goggle-headed boy started stroking his bruised cheek gently. 

"The doctors said that you were pretty badly bruised all over. What happened, Ken?"

Ken looked at Daisuke sadly, his fingers closing over one of Daisuke's hands. Daisuke noticed how helpless Ken looked, bandaged, hooked up to machines, swimming in his hospital gown. 

"They cornered me after school, a group of them," he said in almost a whisper. "I tried to ignore them, to keep going, but I couldn't…"

~*~

A/N: What you are about to read is the flashback of the event that drove Ken to a suicidal panic. I can assure you that it will not be pretty. 

             The final bell rang with a resinous gong, freeing the occupants of Tamachi Middle School. They poured out into the yard from multiple exits, clambering into noisy congregations of young teenagers. Ken was by himself, which he much preferred, thankful that the day was over. He wanted nothing more than to go home, flop down onto his bed, and curl up with a thick book and Wormmon. A group of vocal boys who happened to be in several of Ken's classes called to him from across the yard. 

"Hey Ichijouji!" 

He chose to ignore them and keep walking, which made the hostile young men agitated. They had always hated Ken, were always terribly cruel to him even when he said nothing ill of them. 

"Yeah, ignore us, you fucking faggot!" 

Ken shook his head, mindset on staying neutral. Jibes against his sexuality were constant, and he had learned to block them out. They were nothing more than words, empty threats that did nothing to him. The boys continued, growing closer to Ken by the moment, starting to, very covertly, encircle him. 

"That's right, Ichijouji, keep walking. Go home and screw your queer. Odaiba's full of gay whores, you should move there, be with your bitch."

He took a deep breath, trying to keep his tone even, non-threatening. "I don't care what you say about me, but you will_ not_ speak to me about Daisuke like that. We are not witches for you to burn, so kindly take your torches elsewhere and leave me alone."

            The instant the words left his lips, Ken realized he should never have uttered them. The circle closed around him, the lines on their faces hard. Fists flew at him in flurries, tearing at the neutral gray uniform, striking at his flesh. Bruises blossomed on his pale skin, fingers scratching red welts across exposed arms. They tore at his hair, pulling the strands of darkness brutally, mercilessly. Someone tossed a stone at him, the cold granite striking his cheek. More stones followed in rapid succession, each one piercing with bullet-like force. Ken shielded his face with his arms, keening cries muffled by the angered din of the masses. There was no one to help him. Had they not been homophobic, he would not have been spared the cruel indignity of rape. The boys left slowly, feeling the victors, having purged one more so-called evil from their little world. Ken laid on the ground, caked in dirt and blood and tears, paroxysms wracking his broken body. It was then he decided life wasn't worth living anymore, and he feebly hobbled to the bridge, where he would jump. 

~*~

            He was sobbing quietly now, shuddering violently, tears snaking down his battered cheeks, falling onto his throat. Daisuke held him close, his head nestled in the crook of his neck. Ken's fingers clutched at the thin hospital gown as he wept, the pent-up emotions he had been carrying flooding from him in a surge of hot salinity. 

"Ken, Ken, my poor sweet Ken…" Daisuke murmured, over and over again, hand trailing over his spine in soothing patterns. 

"I did nothing, nothing! I hate it, I hate them, I hate myself!" he howled, burying his face in Daisuke's chest. Daisuke shook his head, placing two fingers under Ken's chin. His bloodshot violet eyes were forced to meet Daisuke's deep chocolate ones. Daisuke smiled sympathetically, softly kissing the bruises on his face, the tears from his cheeks, the hatred from his lips.   

"Don't hate yourself, Ken. Please don't. I'll protect you from them, I promise. I don't know how, I don't care how, but I won't let them hurt you again."

His lips brushed over Ken's delicate skin again, caressing him with a tender, protective touch. Ken softly kissed his jaw, nuzzling him fondly. 

"Thank you, Daisuke."

"What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I didn't take care of you, eh?"

            Ken fingered the bandages on his cheek, shaking his head slightly. He was afraid for himself, and for Daisuke. He was caught in a downward spiral of hatred and prejudice, one that would only continue and worsen with the progression of time. 

"Dai…"

Daisuke gave a guttural response, his eyes half-closed as he lay in bed with Ken. 

"Shouldn't you get back in your own bed?" he questioned gently, lightly fingering the strap of Daisuke's goggles. 

"A little longer. Until you fall asleep," was the soft reply. "Ken, do you think your parents will let you transfer?"

"Transfer?" Ken echoed. 

"Yeah, switch schools. You could come to school with me. We could live together during the week, take you home on weekends. That is, if _my _parents agreed to as well…but if my parents didn't I'm sure Takeru's mom or Iori's or…"

Ken pressed a finger to his lips. "Given the alternative, me being beaten to a pulp every day until graduation, I'm sure both our families will consent."

            Daisuke nodded simply, rubbing at the corner of one eye with his fingers. 

"I'm sorry they beat you until you wanted to die."

"I'm sorry I nearly got you killed as well, Daisuke. It was rather stupid and out of character of me, wasn't it?"

Daisuke wrinkled his nose. "You won't hurt me if I say yes, will you?"

Ken smiled, shaking his head. He breathed a heavy sigh, the day's harrowing events finally taking their toll on him. 

"I'm going to bed. Good night, Daisuke." 

The maroon-haired boy smiled back with half-lidded eyes, leaning over and kissing his battered lover ever-so-gently before retreating to his own side of the ward. 

"Oyasumi to you too, Ken." He shifted around one-handedly, adjusting his blankets and smacking his pillow with his palm. 

"I wouldn't mind hearing you talk at me while I fall asleep, Dai."

"Then I will. There once was this incredible boy named Daisuke, who traveled to another world and befriended the most fabulous of monsters. While he was on his many adventures, the heroic Daisuke fell in love with Ken, the stoic, handsome boy imprisoned by the wicked Digimon Kaiser…"

Soon Daisuke's so-called story became muzzy in Ken's hearing, the world grew hazy, and everything meshed into white noise and black nothingness. 

~*~

            Ken found himself staring at his empty locker, still unsure of what had transpired. It has almost been a full week since the incident, the physical wounds almost completely healed, the emotional ones still slightly raw. After explaining absolutely everything to his parents, which had taken several boxes of tissues and many cups of strong tea, he had been able to convince his parents that the only way he would be safe was if he transferred schools, the sooner the better. The Motomiya household agreed, as did the school administration, though they were terribly sorry to see a prize pupil like Ken leaving. The teachers railed at him, begging and pleading for him not to go, that he was their star, their celebrity, but his decision was made. The books were returned, the forms all signed, the uniforms folded and packed away in a box to be placed on a closet shelf and forgotten. All that was left to do was to pack. He sighed contentedly; glad things were finally starting to work out right. 

"Ichijouji, you fag!" the vitriol-laced words of one of Ken's many classmates bit the air, hornets' stings piercing fragile flesh. 

"Leaving Tamachi for the queer school, fucking prick?"

"That's right, run away again, bitch."

Ken shook his head, his violet eyes narrowed and his brows furrowed. He slammed the locker shut, biting his tongue as his hand went to curl around the strap of his backpack. The beefy, athletic boys slammed him hard against the lockers, whipping his head violently against the cold metal. They punched at him relentlessly, Ken wildly struggling, trying to free his arms and shield his face. Crimson blood trickled from the corner of his paled lips, stark contrast on his lily-white skin. 

"Go fuck yourself, fag."

"We don't want you in our fucking school."

Fear crept into his mind, gnawing at his thoughts. Ken began chanting a mantra in his head, anything to keep him conscious, keep him sane. 

I'm not going to be beaten anymore…I'm never coming back to this school again…I'm going to be with Daisuke…I'm going to be with Daisuke…

            They only ceded when they grew bored with pummeling Ken, who was badly bruised and bleeding all over once again. He gathered his thoughts and his things and limped through the doors of Tamachi, not stopping for anyone or anything. In solemn silence he walked home, only listening to the thrumming of his heart in his breast and the soft sigh of his breathing as he willed his blood to slow, stop flowing from his body, cease trickling into sticky droplets as he walked. He collapsed just inside the door of his apartment, Minomon gliding over to see him. 

            The little green creature stared at him with shining coal-black eyes. "Ken-chan?"

"I'm all right, Minomon, I'm all right," he whispered, hugging his knees to his chest as he sat against the door. 

"You don't look all right. They beat you up again?" 

"I'm all right, it's okay, it'll all work out in the end. I'm going far away from here."

Minomon frowned, nervously plucking at one green ear. "Ken-chan, you really don't sound all right."

Through blackened, swollen eyes he stared at Minomon, arms still clasped about his knees. He seemed dazed, not at all himself; chattering and mumbling like a madman. 

"Minomon, will go get me the phone?" he asked. "And some ice, maybe?"

The young monster complied, disappearing into the apartment and reappearing dragging a white cordless phone in his stubby little paws. 

"I'll see what I can find for ice. I'll probably have to evolve to get it, though."

Ken nodded, slowly punching at the numbers on the phone with ungainly coordination. 

            The line rang once, twice before anyone picked up.

"Ishida desu," was the curt answer, the formalities omitted for reasons unknown. 

Ken swallowed hard. "Yamato-sempai, where are you and how fast can you get here?"

"Ken? What happened? Nevermind, I'll be over in ten minutes…don't try anything."

"I don't think I could if I wanted to," he moaned softly. "Thank you, Yamato."

"I'll be there as soon as I can, I promise…with Daisuke, if I can find him. Ja."

Ken touched his brow, winced at the pain, pulled back and found his fingertips smeared crimson. He had to hold on, had to stay conscious, had to fight the longing to embrace the numb blackness swirling around him, almost tangible. Everything was spinning, whirling out of control in an endless waltz of blood-loss and vertigo. He felt distant, detached, far from the pain, far from himself…

~*~

            Daisuke bit his lip, fidgeting as he stood over the couch. Ken lay half-conscious and dazed, a mass of purple-black and scarlet agony. Every now and then he would utter a painful moan, his hands weakly reaching for something he couldn't touch. Daisuke caught them up in his own, pressing them to his cheek and softly crying over them. He wasn't usually one to cry, he was Motomiya Daisuke, the Courageous One, leader of the Chosen Children, but the bleeding of his heart for the one he loved superseded his rationality. He felt a hand touch his shoulder, nodded slightly. Yamato bore little expression, his deep sapphire eyes unreadable, but Daisuke could tell the older boy was just as concerned as he was. 

"I don't understand it, Yamato. Why do they hate him so much?" he whispered. 

"Because they're afraid of anything, or anyone, different. Some people are so blind to the world that they don't understand that uniqueness isn't a bad thing."

"It's not fair!" 

Yamato popped the lid off a bottle of aspirin, shaking the medicine into his open palm. 

"No, it isn't fair. It isn't fair Ken has to be treated this way. It isn't right that _anyone _should be treated this way."

Daisuke took the pills from the elder Chosen, carefully sliding them past Ken's lips. He swallowed convulsively, trying to get the awful taste of aspirin out of his mouth. 

"But can't we do something?"

"This is about all we can do," Yamato stated solemnly. "You can't win every fight, Daisuke, it just isn't possible. This is something far too big for any of us to handle. We're doing the best we can."

"But it's not good enough, Yamato! There has to be more…" Daisuke was growing hysterical, his hands balled into white-knuckled fists. 

"I know it isn't good enough, I'm trying to do all I can to help. But I'm only one man, Daisuke, and the world is too full of ignorance. All we can do for Ken at this point is to be there for him."

            It had taken them an entire roll of bandages to properly dress Ken's wounds, the two young men working in silence. Minomon and Chibimon, who had accompanied Daisuke in the hurried rush to Tamachi, watched on in fearful awe. 

"Itai…" Ken whimpered, finally coming to his senses. 

Yamato smiled wearily. "I'll bet it hurts. I'm just sorry I didn't grab Jyou instead."

"Yamato…Daisuke…"

"Ken, I'm so sorry," Daisuke said softly, brushing a lock of cobalt hair back from Ken's face. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. 

"Is Ken gonna be okay?" Chibimon asked hesitantly. Yamato nodded, getting up from his place beside the couch and stretching tensed muscles. 

"I'll go order takeout and call your folks, Daisuke. I'm figuring it'll be a long night for the two of us. That reminds me…Ken, where the hell are your parents?"

"Work!" Minomon piped up. "Until really, really late they said!" 

The blonde teenager acknowledged this and disappeared into the kitchen, grumbling to himself about one thing or another. 

            Daisuke drew a long breath, frowning. Ken plucked at the throw blanket hanging limply off the back of the couch. 

"I don't get it, Ken. Why did you let them hurt you? Why didn't you fight back?" Daisuke asked suddenly, the sharpness of his voice stabbing through the tension in the air. 

"I couldn't. Daisuke, it would have made no difference if I fought back or not, things would have only gotten worse. Violence only begets more violence, Dai, you know that."

"What I know is that my boyfriend is getting beaten and I can't do anything to stop it."

Ken shook his head weakly. "No, that's not true. I'm going to school with you now, Dai, that should make things better."

Daisuke's fist connected with the coffee table, rattling the bottles of medicine laid out. 

"It doesn't matter where you go, Ken, somebody will always try to give you grief!"

            Ken nodded miserably. "I know. But this time was different than last time, this time I was fighting back…sort of."

The maroon-haired boy's chocolate brown eyes narrowed. "How?"

"When they were punching me out, I just kept telling myself that things would be okay and I was going to be with you from now on and I wouldn't have to hurt like this."

"You did?" Daisuke choked out. 

"And because I kept thinking that, I wasn't afraid, and I didn't hurt as much while they were beating me, and I managed to stay conscious which was the real feat considering how many times my head was slammed against that locker," Ken replied wistfully. 

Daisuke's arms went around Ken, holding him tightly. Ken shuddered a few times, dry sobs, resting his head against Daisuke's chest. 

"I'm not mad at you, you did nothing wrong. I'm mad at everyone else, Ken, they're the ones who treated you so badly. You're right, you're going to school with me, we're going to survive the rest of public schooling together, we'll both get into awesome colleges and see each other as often as possible. We'll get back together after we graduate like nothing ever happened, live in an apartment together, be Daisuke and Ken Motomiya, live happily ever after until we're a pair of geezers reminding each other to take our meds."

"Ken Motomiya…oh Daisuke, that sounds wonderful," Ken mumbled into his love's chest. 

            Not long later Yamato reappeared with several steaming mugs of tea. He leaned on the kitchen doorframe, peering over at his young charges, a contented smile tugging at his lips. 

"Well I'll be damned," he murmured, setting two of the mugs down on the counter and sipping cautiously at the third. Daisuke had fallen asleep over the couch, his fey lover nestled in his arms, bandaged hands curled around strong, tanned ones. Chibimon gave a squeaky giggle as he and Minomon bounded over in exuberant playfulness. Yamato pressed a finger to his lips, silencing them. 

"Let them sleep, they've both been through a lot," the sapphire-eyed boy whispered, taking the little monsters into the kitchen again, where together they pondered over the mystery of chemical equations and the frustration of balancing them. 

~*~

            Monday morning had dawned, and trepidation had sunk like a lead weight in the bottom of Daisuke's stomach. The radio heralded the day by unceremoniously jarring him out of sound sleep with the static-enhanced riffs of the Teen-Age Wolves. Oh, how he wanted to take an axe to the alarm just to shut Yamato up. Suddenly, as if by miracle, the music ceased, and he felt a soft hand caress his cheek. 

"Daisuke-kun, it's Monday."

He grunted, rolling over to hide from the day. Warm lips grazed his cheek, and this time Daisuke allowed his eyes to slowly, regrettably, open. Ken's brilliantly deep violet eyes stared back at him. 

"Good morning, dear lover. School awaits."

            That had been a good two hours ago. Daisuke now sat in homeroom, brooding and staring idly at a pen on his desk. Ken had been whisked away to the guidance office, and Daisuke hadn't seen him since. He bit his lower lip in frustration. He hoped things were going well, wondered where Ken had vanished to, and contemplated whether or not he could hit the back of Takeru's head with his pen without being caught. 

"Something troubling you, Daisuke? Fiver for your thoughts?" Hikari asked. 

"Keep your fiver, 'Kari," he sighed. "Just wondering what's taking Ken so long."

"Oh, you know guidance, Daisuke. They always manage to botch things up and end up taking twice as long as they intend to. Don't worry, he'll make it before second bell."

~*~

            Downstairs, Ken was finishing his meeting with one of the guidance councilors. She handed him a freshly printed schedule, telling him that she hoped he would enjoy going to school at Odaiba Jr. High and that a high school runner would be with him momentarily. He sat down in a plastic chair, going over his schedule quickly. None of his classes were with Daisuke. He panicked, wondering what he would do. None of his classes were with…no, he thought, there was phys. ed. That was the only class he had with Daisuke. The rest were advanced placement level classes, while Daisuke only took college prep level. He was going to die. Ken was certain he was going to…

The runner appeared, a short dark-haired sophomore who had signed up as guidance runner to get out of her first-period study hall, and Ken was whisked off to his homeroom. 

A/N: It's me! As a guidance monkey! Which I'm not…besides, I have study later in the day. 

            Hamasaki-sensei was almost finished taking attendance when the sliding door opened and Ken timidly stepped into the class, offering up the canary yellow guidance slip. 

"This is Ichijouji Ken, he's just transferred here so make him feel welcome, you miscreants. Have a seat with Motomiya and Takaishi, see if you can keep the two of them from scrapping," the monotonous-voiced teacher stated, pointing to the empty desk next to Daisuke. Ken slipped into the chair, keeping his head low. He felt Daisuke's hand brush against his, those deep chocolate eyes staring at him in question. 

"You okay?" he murmured. 

Ken pulled out his schedule and showed it to his boyfriend. "One class with you, that's it."

Daisuke scanned it, then tossed it off to Takeru, who gave it a thorough perusal as well. The blonde grinned at him. 

"You're in luck, Ichijouji. I'm in half of these classes and Hikari's in the other half. And you'll end up having lunch with the lot of us every schedule rotation."

Daisuke gave his hand a brief squeeze. "Don't worry, Takeru and Hikari will watch out for you, and I'll see you in gym and at lunch and stuff. All right?"

"I guess," Ken stated sullenly, wondering if fate would deal another card against him. 

~*~

            Daisuke and Takeru had walked Ken to class, the latter promising to meet Ken inside. He nodded and lingered outside the door for a moment with Daisuke. The goggle-sporting teen put a hand to his shoulder, giving him one of his rare serious looks. 

"We'll only be apart for a little while, it's not like we're saying goodbye forever."

"I know, Dai, I'm sorry for getting all paranoid."

Daisuke briefly kissed his cheek. "Understandable. Now go learn something useful that you can tell me all about in gym, okay?"

"All right, Dai," he murmured, kissing Daisuke in return before heading into class. 

            Eighty-seven minutes later, Ken had survived his first class at Odaiba and found that he was enjoying the school already. Takeru wasted no time in getting Ken acquainted with his friends, most of the junior varsity basketball team, and despite differences in athletic tastes, he was fitting in quite well. He had been given the best shortcuts to all of his classes, and was eager to try one out for the next period's class, when he was beckoned in the hall. 

"Hey, you, Ichijouji!" 

Ken froze. He had barely been in school for two hours and he was already targeted as the new school punching bag? He turned slowly, finding a stocky redheaded boy and a pair of girls standing behind him, one looking identical to the boy towering over him. 

"You're going out with Motomiya Daisuke, aren't you?" he asked, amber eyes narrowed. 

The violet-eyed Chosen of Kindness flinched. The last set of bruises hadn't even faded yet and he was already anticipating new ones. The young man clapped him over the shoulder in a brotherly fashion. 

"Daisuke was right, you _are _adorable!"

Ken blinked. "Beg pardon?" 

"Ashitaka, you have absolutely no manners! It's his first day and you're not making him feel any better!" the redheaded girl chided. 

"Sorry 'bout that. I'm Ashitaka, that's my twin sister Arika and her girlfriend Tomoyo. I play soccer with Daisuke, we're in a couple of your classes."

Ken couldn't believe his ears. This boy wasn't trying to maul him. He wasn't being called derogatory names, or being the target of fistfuls of rocks. Then it really sank in. He was free. No longer did he have to fear of being abused because of his sexuality, or be afraid to speak up. These people liked him, regardless of his shortcomings or beliefs. He was free to be Ichijouji Ken, which was all he had ever wanted. 

~*~

            Around midnight he was still lying awake, staring up at the ceiling. He could hear Minomon and Chibimon yelping in their sleep, soft little squeaks from the two of them as they lay in a huddled ball at the foot of Daisuke's bed. 

"Ken-chan, are you awake?" Daisuke whispered in the darkness. Ken could hear him shifting in the mattress above him. 

"Mm-hmm."

The maroon-haired boy lowered himself onto Ken's mattress, leaning over Ken until they were almost nose-to-nose. Ken could feel his heart thrumming in his ribcage. 

"You didn't tell me how your first day of school was," Daisuke murmured. 

Ken smiled at him. "It was wonderful, Dai. I felt like I genuinely belonged there…and your friend Ashitaka said I was cute."

Daisuke's eyes widened. "If he's making a move on my man, I swear…"

The violet-eyed boy below him gently lipped his throat. "Daisuke…"

He grinned and kissed him fully, his lips parting submissively, their tongues sparring inside their mouths, tasting the sweetness of each other. Daisuke's lips moved down Ken's neck, leaving a trail of fire on the pale skin. Ken's body rose underneath him, fingers twining in Dai's hair. 

"Ken, are you sure we should…?"

Ken nodded, kissing him again. "Yes, Daisuke. This is one jump I'm willing to take…"

~*~

**Wow. This was the darkest thing I have EVER written. **

**_I'll say. _**

The idea had been fluttering in my mind for a while… 

**_Yeah, while you were on Internet probation. _**

**Quiet, Muse, I need no sniping from you. **

**_Do us a favor and review, will ya?_**

**It'll make my day.**


End file.
